An Understanding
by WiseWithWords
Summary: On one of the most sorrowful nights of Draco Malfoy's life a conversation with an old enemy could bring some light to the darkness.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

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This was his entire fault. It must be some sort of payback for what he'd done during the war. Astoria would probably realise this and never forgive him. What if she left him and took Scorpius?

Draco Malfoy was sitting in the maternity ward in St Mungo's beside his sleeping wife, Astoria. She had only hours earlier given birth to a stillborn little girl and had just sobbed herself to sleep in the midst of many crying babies on the same ward. They were going to call her Celina, after the bright star, continuing with the Malfoy family tradition. It was about the only family tradition Draco had kept up.

He was just sitting there, quiet in his sorrow when suddenly he heard footsteps behind him.  
"Draco?" Hermione Weasley announced her presence. He was astonished if not a little numb; he hadn't seen her since he left Hogwarts after the battle.  
"Hello Granger, what are you doing here?" he asked wearily. He was too despondent to dredge up any emotion in his greeting and he didn't look even up but she didn't seem to mind.  
"It's Weasley now, surely you knew that?" she replied, a fleeting look of pity crossing her features, "I just came over to see if you are okay. I wanted to offer my condolences to both of you."

Draco looked up at her in surprise. He didn't reply for a moment, thinking of what to say. He responded eventually,  
"Firstly, old habits die hard. Secondly, thank you but why? Lastly, you haven't answered my question."  
Hermione wasn't fazed by his bluntness,  
"No one should have to lose their own child, not even you. I'm here because I've been on the ward for the past couple of days and since Hugo fell asleep I have had little distraction. I saw your wife come in."

He just returned his gaze to the peeling paint on the opposite wall,  
"It's my fault. This is my comeuppance and now Astoria is paying the price for marrying me. I thought that having a child was as bad as it could get, seeing Scorpius mistreated by society because of his surname, his father. I was wrong, so wrong, this is ten times worse. Why am I even telling you this, we hate each other!" Draco's voice was becoming hysterical.

Hermione looked him straight in the eyes,  
"I don't hate you. I haven't hated you for ten years now Draco."  
He was disbelieving,  
"You have every right to, you know." she smiled slightly, "I know. My husband and brothers-in-law all fully exercise that right. However, I will never forget what you did. You lied to your father for Harry. More importantly, you looked away."

Draco now looked confused,  
"I don't follow you."  
Hermione took a deep breath and spoke quickly,  
"It would have been expected of you to lord over us when we were taken to Malfoy Manor. We who had always thwarted you, Harry and Ron in Quidditch and fights, I in academics, you could have taken your revenge but you didn't. You didn't take any pleasure in identifying us and you practically lied to Lucius when he asked you about Harry. I will never forget the look on your face when Bellatrix tortured me. Others were appeared uncomfortable and some even enjoying the show. The spilling of the filth in the Mudblood's veins. You didn't, you looked physically sick and you turned away. For that I will be eternally grateful, even though I detest many of the things you did and you stood for."

"I…it was nothing to be praised for, it's not like I did anything to stop her. Weasley did, Potter did, it was all I could do not to watch," Draco replied ashamedly, "I am sorry you know, for everything, not just the war but everything."  
Hermione sat down beside him, "I am too, especially for punching you in third year, I was just having a very bad year and you were being you and although I'm pretty sure you deserved it I am sorry." Draco felt a smile creep back onto his face,  
"Granger, that has to be the strangest apology I have ever heard in my life." Hermione smiled back,  
"You seem a bit more like your old self."

His expression turned serious very quickly,  
"I hope not. I have spent the past ten years trying to change, to be better, for her-" gesturing at his sleeping wife, "-and for Scorpius. I will raise him to be different, not to be like me or my father. It's bad enough he has to live with my name but if I try to bring him up with good beliefs and values, like Potter always was, maybe he can make some good friends and people will see him as Scorpius and not just a Malfoy, like me."

"I sincerely hope you can succeed. I'm sure that with Astoria's guidance you will both mature into good people. I have to go, I'm expecting Ron any minute, you know what Auror's hours are like. Tell Astoria that she is free to take as much time off as she needs. I have already chosen replacements for her and for myself. I'll inform everyone at the Ministry who needs to know."  
Hermion paused, a small smile crossing her face,  
"By the look on your face I take it you were unaware that Astoria and I have been working in the same department for the past year. I'll leave you two to discuss that."

Astoria had just woken up and was looking around as though looking for something. As she burst into a fresh bout of tears Hermione stood up to leave. Draco grabbed her arm briefly before she left.  
"Thank you," he said before turning to face his wife. Hermione knew what he had meant by his thanks and went back to soothe her newborn son, who had just been awakened by his father.  
"Where did you get to?" a worried Ron asked, "Is everything okay?"  
Hermione thought about telling him but she decided it wasn't the time, she would talk to him when they got home,  
"I just met someone from work. Listen dear, could you do me a favour?"

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_Reviews are appreciated._


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